Fresh Air
by dalovelover
Summary: Alex was at the prison performing a surgery on an inmate when the riots broke out. After months of solitude, she is discovered by Rick's group. Will they all be able to survive once relationships are formed? How will the tests against the prison be different with a new addition to the group? I DO NOT OWN TWD CHARACTERS.
1. The Infirmary

There was not a sound to be heard down the dark hallway.

Carl scanned the narrow passage, his gun steady. He could see the infirmary doors; he was a few steps away. Slowly advancing, he jumped as he heard a walker come from beside him. Backing up and holstering his gun, Carl swiftly stabbed the walker in the eye, pleased with himself when the walker stopped fighting. _Take that mom. I can handle myself._

Carl knew is parents would be pissed that he went alone, but he needed to prove his worth as a soldier. Plus, Hershel was dying a couple floors away. There was no time for backup.

Reaching the doors, Carl slowly pushed on them, disappointed at their locked refusal to open. He jammed against the door with his shoulder, the sound alerting several walkers to his location. Slowly streaming down the hall, Carl braced himself, feeling fear rush through his body. Looking inside the infirmary from the door's blurred window, he could see another figure slowly approaching. _Great, another walker. I'm definitely going to die._

Suddenly, with the walker's snarls growing louder, the infirmary door burst open, Carl falling backwards into the room and onto the floor. Quickly sitting up, he grabbed his gun and pointed it at the moving figure, who was hastily locking the door against the many walkers banging against it.

"You're alive?" he choked out.

Carl watched as a woman turned around, pressing her back into the doors to keep them from rattling. She was maybe around his mom's age, or a little younger. She at first looked surprised, then scared after noticing his gun still raised.

"Shh", she whispered. "They'll go away in a few minutes if we keep our voices down."

Carl stared astonished, standing up and keeping his gun steadily pointed at her. "How did you get in here?"

"I've been here for months", she answered quietly. "I worked here." She raised her hands in surrender, tentatively taking a step away from the door.

Carl flicked his gun to the corner of the infirmary. "Go over there, now."

Complying, she walked across the room and sank to her knees, her hands still held up. "Are you with the group that cleared the yard last night? I heard gunshots…" She started. "What are you doing here by yourself?"

Carl sighed in frustration, knowing his Dad was going to lose it at him. Thinking carefully about what to say, he decided to ignore her questions. "I need gauze and antibiotics. Where are they?" He demanded.

Suddenly becoming serious, she lifted her head. "Is someone hurt?"

"Tell me where they are, _now!"_ Carl asked again, moving closer to her with his gun.

Her eyes becoming frantic, she quickly pointed at a drawer across the room. "Try in there. Here, you need the keys to open it." She slowly reached one hand in her back pocket, removing a set of silver keys on a chain. "Try the smallest one" she said calmly, tossing the keys to Carl.

Carl slowly backed towards the drawers, his gun still raised. "What's your name?" he asked her, as he sank to his knees and started fiddling with the keys.

"Alex", she answered. "What's your name?"

"What are you doing here?" Carl ignored her again.

"I was working when some riots broke out. A couple of us locked ourselves in here…" she trailed off.

"Where's the rest of your group?" Carl asked.

"They're all dead, They were trying to find other survivors. Couldn't make it out of the prison," Alex answered steadily. "It's just me now."

"You a guard?" Carl inquired, jamming the key into the drawer which refused to open.

"No, I'm a doctor," Alex answered quietly. "Will you bring me to the person who's injured? I can help them."

Carl glanced at her incredulously. "You're a doctor?! What are you doing in a prison?"

"I was operating on a stabbed inmate. I used to be on-call for the prison…I-I was a surgeon at Grady Memorial in Atlanta," Alex answered, still on her knees.

Carl stood up, turning his gun back at her. "Open the drawer," He demanded.

Alex stood up slowly, feeling his tough-guy act weaken. _He's just a kid, He's not going to shoot._ "Sorry," She answered, giving Carl a small smile. "They never repaired anything in here before the outbreak. You have to jiggle it a little." She knelt down, inserting the key and opening the drawer for him.

Placing his gun in his holster, Carl sank to his knees, grabbing loads of gauze, bandages, and antibiotic ointment, shoving it into a black bag.

Alex looked at him hopefully. "What's your name?" she tried again, to no avail. "Listen, you don't have to take me to your group," she whispered calmly, "But if you'd like to tell me what's going on, I might be able to give you some more stuff that can help."

Carl looked at her pointedly, Alex raising her hands again in surrender with a small smile. "Please" she asked him. "Let me help."

Carl sighed. "I'm Carl. And he was bit. Okay?"

"Where?" Alex asked calmly, dropping her hands.

"His leg. So, my Dad cut it off-" Carl started.

"Was the amputation below the knee?" Alex inquired sharply.

"Yes," Carl answered slowly. "But we think he's bleeding too much... We're going to burn the wound, so the bleeding will stop."

Alex sighed, looking down at the floor. "No, the shock could kill him. He's passed out, right?" she asked, with Carl nodding. Her voice became calm, yet serious as she continued. "Okay, just keep his leg elevated. And make sure he doesn't get a fever. Do you know how to make a tourniquet?"

Carl shook his head quickly, "No".

Alex quickly stood up, unlocking another cabinet and removing a large black band. "This is a surgical tourniquet. Wrap this tight- as close to the amputation site as you can. To stop the hemorrhaging. And keep pressure on the site. Once the bleeding slows, take the band off. Don't leave it on for too long. Don't forget okay?"

Carl nodded quickly.

"Also, watch his breathing. The reason he hasn't opened his eyes is because his body is in shock, so you should keep him warm too- maybe an extra coat or a blanket." Alex continued. Looking around, she stood up and unlocked another drawer, grabbing gloves, metal clippers for gauze, and sterile needles with packets of suture thread. "Take these too. Eventually someone will have to stitch him up. You have a doctor down there with you, right?"

Not giving anything away, Carl gazed at her.

"Give this to someone to stitch up the open vessels after the wound's been cleaned..." Alex slowed, shoving the materials into Carl's black bag. Noticing his afraid look, she took a deep breath, looking at him with a smile. "I'm sure he'll be fine," she told him sympathetically, zipping his bag.

Carl stared at her, weighing his options. _Could I bring her back? She could save Hershel…_

Alex snapped him out of his trance, placing the back gently over his shoulder. "Carl? You with me? Remember everything I told you? You best be heading back, soldier" She said softly.

Carl looked up at her. "I think we're gonna need your help."


	2. Introductions

Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional and might get some of the terms wrong. Also, characters and storylines have been modified for the purposes of this story. Here goes…

"Any change?" Rick asked, hovering outside of Hershel's cell holding two large bags of corn.

"He hasn't opened his eyes yet…We're going to cauterize the wound," Carol told him. "He's still bleeding too much…He hasn't opened his eyes yet either."

Rick sighed, shutting his eyes deeply. The guilt over Hershel was destroying him. _What if he never wakes up?_ Rick thought. _I would have killed-_

Steering away from this thought process, Rick glanced at Glenn. "Take my cuffs- put them on him. I'm not taking any chances."

Walking away, Rick looked around as T-Dog loaded in the food supplies found in the cafeteria, placing down boxes full of canned beef and corn. It was a victory to be sure; they had found a building; a secure place to stay and grow. Looking around for Carl, Rick didn't see him, suddenly growing alarmed. Turning around, he noticed a heavily pregnant Lori leaving Hershel's cell.

"Where's Carl?" He asked. "I need him to organize the food."

Lori looked around. "I thought he was with Shane; they were clearin' out the cells."

Rick's faced twitched involuntarily. He had grown more accustomed to his wife dating his best friend. It's not like he and Lori had been working well before he was shot. Then they thought he was dead, and they started up when the world went to shit. Although Rick and Lori spent one night together on the night of his arrival, in the weeks following the two only grew more withdrawn. The day they spoke about it on the farm, everything changed.

 _Rick approached Lori on the edge of the farm property. Walking towards her with a clear purpose, Lori stood up._

 _Rick held up the trash from her bathroom. "Is there something you need to tell me?"_

 _Lori sighed. "We can't leave. I'm pregnant."_

 _Rick waved the garbage around. "Are you?"_

 _Lori looked at him pointedly. "I threw em' up."_

 _Rick glared at her, angrily throwing his hands in the air._

" _You can yell if you want. Scream if you have to, but we need to talk, Rick," Lori told him._

 _Rick marched towards her. "How long have you known? Glenn, obviously knows. Rather than talking to me you sent him to get pills?!"_

 _Lori looked down. "Rick, I threw them up. I screwed up. I don't know how I do this!"_

 _Rick glared at her, silence weighing in the air. "And what does Shane think?"_

 _Lori shut her eyes, tears rolling down her face. Opening them, she blinked at him, questions burning in her eyes._

 _Rick pinched his nose with his fingers, his face anguished. "I know. Of course, I know. You thought I was dead, right?" Rick asked quietly._

 _Lori looked at him sympathetically. "Rick…"_

 _Knowing what he was about to hear, Rick leaned his hands on the fence, stretching his arms and taking a long deep breath._

 _Lori stood up straighter, embracing her courage. "Rick, you and I haven't been working for a long time. And Shane and I…"_

" _Stop," Rick called out._

" _I've wanted to tell you since you got back, but everything was so confusing for a while. And then the night the walkers attacked the campsite, everything became so clear," she continued._

" _Please stop," Rick demanded again._

 _Lori sighed, letting a moment rest before continuing softly. "I don't know what would have happened if the world hadn't gone to hell. But it did. And now-"_

" _ENOUGH," Rick's tone making Lori jump. He pushed off the fence, looking at her. "So what, you wanna' be with Shane now? My best fuckin friend?!" Noticing her glare, he continued angrily. "It's not like we can hire lawyers and split our assets. This is how this has to happen."_

" _Yes," Lori choked out. "Shane was there when you weren't."_

" _And what about when I was there? That night when I first got back?" Rick questioned. Pointing at her stomach, Rick glared at her. "You know what I'm talking about."_

 _Lori sighed. "Rick that's…unlikely," she settled, not able to say out loud the question of her baby's paternity._

Rick snapped out of his memory, his eyes darting quickly at Lori's now massive stomach. It had been more than 8 months since the farm- Lori and Shane had been together for a while. Even Carl knew. Things were awkward and tense, but Rick had become the leader. Although he couldn't help but remain bitter, he had other things to worry about.

Rick glanced upstairs, looking for his son. Hearing commotion in the common room, he changed his thoughts from Carl and quickly darted towards the gate.

Taking in the scene around him, Rick could feel the tension in the air. The five prisoners stood around their table of weapons, with Daryl and T on the other side. Rick walked towards his group and stopped, glaring at Tomas.

"Why do I need this…when I got this?" Tomas asked slyly, pulling his gun out of his jumpsuit slowly.

"You don't fire guns," Daryl answered lowly. "Not unless your back's up against a wall. Noise attracts em'. Really riles em' up."

"We'll go in two by two. Daryl will run point with T. Stay tight. Hold formation-" Rick began, stopping when he heard banging against the gate to the cell block door.

Quickly, he darted up the stairs, drawing his gun at the door. Daryl quickly followed, his crossbow levelled steadily.

"Dad!" He heard his son call from the other side. "It's me, hurry!"

Rick flew into panic, unlocking the door quickly, surprised when he came face to face with a woman with her hands in the air. Wearing torn up blue jeans, black high top converse, and a tattered ACDC black t-shirt.

"Let's go," Carl pushed her inside, standing behind her. He quickly turned around and slammed the gate door, Turning back quickly to watch the stranger. She walked in slowly, glancing around the common room. Rick cocked his gun loudly, the woman whipping around at the sound and raising her hands higher towards her head.

"Who the hell is this?" Rick asked Carl, not taking his eyes off of her. "What were you doing out–"

"We needed medicine for Hershel. I went to the infirmary and found her there. She's a doctor, Dad," Carl pleaded.

Rick's fury rose up inside him, shifting his eyes to his son. "You went by yourself? Are you insane?" his teeth baring slightly.

"I took care of it," Carl snapped. "I killed two walkers. I'm not an idiot."

"Watch your mouth, kid," Daryl chimed in.

Rick marched towards the woman, raising his gun at her. "What's your name?" he demanded.

She couldn't hide the terror on her face. "Al-Alex," she stammered. "Carl's right, I'm a- "

She trailed off, hearing chuckles from the other side of the room. When she noticed Tomas and Andrew, she exhaled a loud, panicked breath, backing away.

"No fuckin way," Tomas sneered. "Dr. F? Where you been all my life?"

Rick looked between them, noticing Alex taking a loud inhale through her nose in shock. Her hands still held in the air, she briefly closed her eyes. When she opened them, she turned her gaze back to Rick, her posture immediately became more calm and reserved.

"Carl told me about your friend Hershel. It sounds like you need help in there," she told him.

"You're not going inside," Rick threatened.

"I'll go back to the infirmary after, I'll never come back. Just let me help your friend," Alex pleaded, her hands still high.

Slowly, Rick watched as Alex moved her hand downward, pulling a knife out of the pocket of her jeans and laying it on the ground. It was stained with blood. Glancing up at Rick and Daryl, their weapons ever steadily pointed at her, she also removed a pair of keys on a chain.

"We've already got keys," Rick snarled.

"They're to the infirmary, Dad," Carl explained. "Only the Doctors have em'."

Alex stood back up slowly with her hands still raised. "That's all I have. You can take everything in there. Medicine, bandages…" she looked deeply at Rick, dropping her hands. "He's gonna need crutches when he gets through this."

Rick felt as though she knocked the wind out of him; her green eyes radiating intensity and kindness. Her comment about Hershel's future gave him a sense of optimism he hadn't yet felt about the prison. Analyzing the rest of her face, Rick felt chills staring at her freckles on her nose and cheeks, the small scar above her left eyebrow-

"Rick," Daryl implored, snapping him out of his thought process. "Let her go in. We can always send her back after," he concluded, snatching the keys to the infirmary off the ground.

Rick sighed, glancing at Carl. Rolling his eyes briefly, he stared at his son, making his decision. "We'll talk about this later," He told Carl. "Take her inside."

Rick watched as Alex nodded, Carl taking her arm and rushing her towards the gate to the cell block.

"See you later, sugar!" Andrew called out to her. Rick saw as Alex flicked her gaze towards the prisoners. After scanning them, she glanced back at Rick once more, almost as if she couldn't help it. She then disappeared into the cell block, with Carl locking the gate closed behind them.

"You blushing Atlanta?" Tomas called out to him. "She's a fine piece."

Rick boiled with anger. "Just remember to go for the brain," he told Tomas in a low voice.

"Let's go," Daryl called. The group then entered the darkness of the tombs to find another cell block, where danger was sure to find them.


	3. Saving Hershel

DISCLAIMER: Speech from "LOST 1x01". I DO NOT OWN. Also, in this version, Shane is alive. I think the loss of Shane's friendship and the antagonism towards his relationship with Lori is still a major part of Rick as a character, I wanted to see how it would play out if Shane had lived. Hope y'all like it!

ALEX POV

 _Rick…_

Alex remembered his name. His blue-eyed stare, his tan face, his rough stubble around his jaw. _No time for that now,_ she thought to herself.

"He's in here," Carl called to her, Alex rushing towards the cell.

When she entered the doorway, members of the group jumped up. Alex focused her eyes on the man on the bed. One hand cuffed to the bed post, he was older, maybe late 70s, breathing abnormally. Her eyes drafted downwards to the mess of blood protruding from the amputation site of his lower leg.

"Who the hell are you?" Alex turned to find a Korean man holding his gun at her. He stood protectively in front of a young, tall girl with short brown hair. She had obviously been crying.

"I'm Alex, Rick let me in. I'm here to help," Alex answered sympathetically.

"She's a doctor," Carl explained. "I found her in the infirmary."

An older woman with pixie cut, silver hair emerged from the cell, asking "you are?" quietly. With a nod from Alex, she quickly grabbed Alex by the wrist, pulling her into the cell. "Thank god," the woman cried. "I don't know what I'm doing. He gave me a little training, but there's just so much blood- "

"Calm down," Alex implored kindly. Alex hastily tightened her ponytail. Staring down at Hershel, she began to get to work. "Carl, give me the gloves from the bag."

She heard the mumblings in the background about her presence, but they were far away compared to the issue at hand.

" _Carl, I thought you were with Shane. I appreciate you went to help- "_

" _Get off my back!"_

" _Carl, she's your mother. You can't talk to her like that."_

Alex tuned them out, attempting to collect data from her patient. Looking at her watch, she reached her fingers onto Hershel's neck. _Pulse is way down. Skin clammy._ Leaning towards his face, she listened to his breath. _Labored breathing._

"Here," Carl said, handing her the gloves.

Alex put them on immediately. "How long ago did this happen?" She called out to the room, lifting the bullet proof vest off of Hershel's chest.

"Less than an hour," the gray-haired woman told her. Her voice shook with panic.

Alex moved down towards the amputation site. It was clumsy, it would be difficult to find the correct vessels to close off. Noticing the woman's panic, Alex turned to her, offering a reassuring smile. "What's your name?"

The woman looked at her, stating "Carol" with a small smile.

"Carol, you did a great job, okay?" Alex told her, resuming her analysis of Hershel's leg.

"Is he gonna die?" A small voice asked from outside the cell.

Alex turned, finding a young, blonde haired girl staring at the man on the bed. Her arms were wrapped tightly around a tall woman with long brown hair, who was massively pregnant. _That could be a problem_ , Alex thought before she could stop herself.

"Not if I can help it," Alex answered her softly. "Carol, I'm going to need you to keep an eye on Hershel's breathing while I clean the wound and stitch him up. Carl, give me the bag please."

Carol nodded quickly, determined. Moving towards Hershel's head, she sat on her knees against the bottom bunk, taking her position.

"Maggie," The Korean boy said softly, resting his hand on the short brown haired girl's shoulder. "We should give her some space."

The girl nodded, taking his hand and exiting the cell. Everyone stood at the doorway of the small cell, watching Alex intently, as she began to clear the blood and debris from the mess on Hershel's leg. She definitely knew what she was doing.

For Alex, she tuned everything and everybody out, focused on her work as she used to in the OR. A sense of calm found her once again as it often did. After adequately cleaning the wound, she began stitching the open vessels. It was a challenge to be sure; the amputation was definitely a trauma, and not as clear-cut as one that was surgically prepped. She remained focused for what felt like an eternity, stitching up the mess. It was as though the whole world faded away.

After a while, Alex finally spoke, not removing her eyes from the site and continuing to sew. "How's his breathing?"

Everyone watching jumped a little, surprised at her sudden voice.

"It's still slow," Carol said softly.

"His body is in shock. It's a good thing he's breathing on his own," Alex replied. Reaching into the bag, she grabbed the sterile gauze, and began to wrap it around Hershel's leg slowly and methodically. "Can someone get me another pillow please?"

Hearing footsteps leave and return, Alex reached behind her, grabbing the pillow that was being offered. She gently raised Hershel's leg, placing a second pillow underneath to elevate it even more. Glancing at the wrapping she had done, she took a long deep breath, removing the gloves with loud snaps. She had done what she could do.

Standing up and walking towards Hershel's head, she felt his forehead. _No fever, that's good._ Taking his pulse again, she felt disappointed. _Still slow…_

She turned to face the gallery of people who watched her. "The wound is sewn up. It doesn't look like it's infected. He doesn't have a fever and the bleedings under control."

She heard the contented sighs of relief before continuing. "I'm going to stay here, to keep an eye on his breathing. Just for as long as needed," she assured them.

"Thank you so much," The blonde girl threw her arms around Alex, taking her by surprise. "Sorry," she said quickly, taking her arms away and stepping back, tears in her eyes. "I'm Beth, he's my dad," she said softly. "This is my sister Maggie, and that's Glenn."

Alex looked over to Maggie, who was sitting with Glenn on the steps. She waved, and Alex waved back. "It's nice to meet you all," Alex said kindly. "I'm gonna go check on him," she looked back at Beth, pointing inside the cell.

With that, Alex walked back towards the unconscious Hershel, sitting down pretzel style next to his bed. Taking a deep breath, an intense look crossed her face as she stared at the man's face. _Don't die. Please don't die._

After what had felt like hours, Alex's eyes snapped up to the two sisters entering the cell.

"Can we have a minute with him?" Maggie asked.

Alex nodded, hearing her knees crack as she stood up. "Course," she told them, with a small smile. "I'll be right out there."

Exiting the cell, Alex walked out and looked all around the cell block, noticing the blankets on the floor, the bags of gear, the cans of food in the corner.

"Never seen a prison?" Glenn teased lightly, her head turning to find him next to her.

"I never was allowed to go the cell blocks," Alex explained. "The inmates came to the infirmary if there was ever a problem."

"How long have you been up there?" Glenn asked.

"Months," Alex explained. "A couple of people were with me for a while…we found food in the guard's locker rooms next door. Then one day they went out to find more weapons and they never came back," she recalled sadly, a vacant expression filling her eyes. "I didn't know anyone else was out there until I head your group last night in the yard. I could see you from the window in the infirmary," she told him.

"We've been on the road for months. Thought we could settle down here," Glenn explained.

"On the road," Alex repeated. "You must feel pretty relieved to have a place of your own now."

Glenn looked at her. "I'll feel more relieved when Hershel is back on his feet…foot" he corrected sadly.

Alex smiled at him. "I'm gonna do everything I can to help him," she said determinedly.

Suddenly, they heard Beth shrieking from inside the cell. "Somebody HELP! ALEX! HELP!"

Alex ran back in, finding a paralyzed Maggie in the corner and Beth hovering over Hershel's torso.

Quickly pushing her out of the way, Alex felt Hershel's forehead and chest. _No breath._ Leaning down to listen to his heart beat, she tuned out the sounds of Beth's panicked cries. Quickly leaning down, she tilted Hershel's head back, lifting his chin. She blew air into Hershel's lungs, then compressing on his heart. _1, 2, 3, 4, 5…_

Counting to 30, Alex checked his airway again. _Still nothing_. Leaning down to give another rescue breath, she gasped when Hershel's arm threw up around her neck, hearing the girls shrieking behind her. _Oh, no, is he…_

"No!" she heard from behind her. "Alex!"

Pushing gently away from Hershel, she felt herself flung into the arms of the girls, pulling her backwards, the three of them gasping for air. Looking back at Hershel, she saw his opened eyes, his gasping breath, before them fluttering closed once again.

She exhaled a long sigh of relief, before going back to Hershel and checking his heart and airways once again. "He's breathing, he's okay," she choked out, placing one hand over his heart and the other covering her eyes in relief. "He's okay," she said again.

Maggie and Beth hugged, crying with relief. Alex uncovered her eyes and looked around, finding Carl pointing his gun at Hershel. She was still gasping for air, the fear of being bitten not entirely leaving her yet. She nodded at him slowly, imploring him to put his gun down. Carl nodded back, and holstered his gun.

"Thank you," Maggie spoke for the first time. "Thank you."

After more time passed, Alex stood against the back-wall corner of the cell, her arms crossed. She stared down at Hershel on the bed. _Open your eyes. Open your eyes. Open your-_

"What the fuck?!"

Alex yelped in surprise when she felt her body being dragged out of the cell, and thrown up against a wall. She let out a grunt as she felt an arm being pressed against her throat. A large man had her pinned against the wall, helpless. He was huge, with a stern look on his face. His features exacerbated by his shaved head.

"Shane, stop!" the pregnant woman called to him.

"Shut up, Lori!" he called back, his eyes shooting daggers at Alex. "Who the hell are you, huh?"

"She's a doctor, Shane!" Carl called. "She got here a little while ago, Dad let her in!"

"Your dad's a dumbass," Shane said back to Carl. "Back up, kid. We don't know her. Check her for weapons, Glenn!"

"What's going on?!" Alex looked over as she saw Rick running inside the cell block, with Daryl and another following in behind him.

"You let this girl in?" Shane demanded of Rick.

"Hershel stopped breathing a little while ago, she saved him!" Carl called out.

"It's true," Glenn told them.

"Shane, let her down," Rick threatened lowly.

Grunting, Shane removed his arm from Alex's neck. Alex breathed in deeply, staring at the man who had almost just killed her.

"I'm going after Hershel wakes up," she told them calmly. "I get the mistrustfulness; I would be surprised if you weren't."

"Guys!" Carol called out from inside the cell. Everyone ran in, leaving Alex alone in the outside area. Walking slowly toward the entrance of the cell, she felt her stomach flip as she heard the sighs and gasps of relief. Hearing Maggie and Beth say "Daddy". Hearing the sounds of the handcuffs unclick. _He's alive._

Not wanting to intrude, Alex left the cell block, finding her way to the outdoor catwalk her and Carl had crossed. Lifting her face to the sun, she shut her eyes, breathing in the fresh air. Opening them, she glanced around at the scene below her, the prison courtyard and fields full of dead bodies. The undead clawing and snarling at the fences. Glancing down at herself, she noticed her arms and jeans covered in blood.

Hearing the door open, she paused as she saw Carl coming out to meet her.

"Hey soldier," she said to him.

He smiled at her. "You saved him," he said. "I can't believe it."

She smiled back. "I'm glad I could help."

He glanced up at her quizzically. "You don't seem scared at all. At all of this…" he trailed off, waving his hand around.

She smiled down at him. "Well, fear is sort of an odd thing," she told him. Noticing his curiosity at her answer, she continued, looking down at him. "When I was a resident, my first solo surgery was a spinal procedure on a 12-year-old kid. A boy. Kind of looked like you," she told him. "And at the end, after 15 hours of surgery, I was closing him up and I…I accidentally ripped his Dural sack," she said. At his confused glance, she continued. "It's the base of the spine where all the nerves come together- it has a super thin membrane- like a piece of wet tissue," she explained to him. "And it just _ripped_ open. And the nerves just poured out of him like angel hair pasta. Spinal fluid flowing out of him and I…and the terror was just so crazy. So real. And I knew I had to deal with it," she continued, a tear streaming down her face. "So I made a choice. I let the fear in, let it do its thing, but only for 10 seconds. So, I counted, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. And then it was over, gone. Like that," she said, snapping her fingers. Looking back at Carl, she concluded her story. "I went back to work, sewed him up, and he was fine."

"If that had been me, I think I would have made a run for it," Carl said back.

"I don't think that's true," Alex smiled, empathetically. "You're not running now. Not with all of this," she mimicked his earlier hand gesture.

Hearing a throat clear, Alex whipped around to find Rick standing in the doorway, not knowing how long he had been there. Carl smiled up at her and walked towards his Dad.

"Go find your mom," Rick told him lowly.

Carl nodded at him, turning back to Alex. "See ya around," he told her, disappearing back into the cell block.

Alex smiled as Rick joined her on the catwalk. "He's a good kid," she told him softly. "Scared the hell out of me when he first found me though," she said with a small laugh.

Rick laughed softly too. "He scares me all the time," he told her quietly.

Alex looked over at him. "He copies you."

"How do you mean?" Rick asked.

"You hold your guns the same. You walk the same…" trailing off, she turned her head to look at Rick. "I knew when I first saw you he was your son. You have the same eyes." She turned her head to look towards the sun once again.

Rick frowned, muttering "overservant". Glancing at her, he noticed the way the sun outlined her face. "Sorry about Shane," he told her, in need of a change of thought process.

Alex smiled, looking down. "That's okay, really," she assured him. "I get it," she told him earnestly.

After letting the silence linger, Rick looked at her arms, covered in Hershel's blood. "Your hands are shaking," he noticed.

She turned to him. "They always do after a procedure," she explained. Going silent again, she glanced behind her to the exit of the catwalk. "I'm going to head back to the infirmary now. I don't wanna overstep," she told him. "If you need any more help- "

"You should stay with us," Rick told her, decidedly. Her head whipped around, finding him looking at her. "There are other prisoners in there now, it's not safe."

Alex furrowed her eyebrows. "I don't know about- "

"You've earned your place," Rick said slowly. "We could use your help."

Alex searched his face. "You sure?" she asked finally.

Rick, embarrassed, looked down at his feet, resting his hands against the chain-link fence. "I'm sure," he told her.


End file.
